A group of adventures sat around a table at the Earthy Chestnut. It was a tavern in the Village of Ravenwallow. It was a good place to pick up rumors, and as such, people throughout the establishment were talking. Hanging on the main wall was a bulletin board with various notices.
Gavin was the team leader. A rather buff man, he wore steel plate armor and bracers, his helmet resting at his side at the moment. His weapon of choice was a broadsword. His shield would normally be strapped to his arm, but it too was off his person, along with his helmet.
Silvius was his second-in-command, and also the only single woman on the team. She wore reinforced leather armor and used a pair of short swords. She was rather fast on her feet.
Crazar was their spellcaster. He wore a breastplate under his red robes. He used an oak staff with a large jewel at the end, with his backup weapon, a short sword, at his hip.
Sahar was the team's healer. She wore light brown robes and used an iron quarterstaff, a crystal protected in its iron casing at the top.
Her girlfriend Thalia sat next to her. She wore leather armor and boots. Her weapon was a bow, and she could channel her limit mana into her arrows.
The group were travelers, heading from one region to another. They were all in their 20s, but Gavin was close to 30. This was just a rest stop, but they still needed to earn money along the way. A common job they normally took was clearing out the monsters or highwaymen that had been attacking the route.
A small group was talking at the next table. "I heard Dunstan fell just the other day."
"What does that make now, three villages? It hasn't even been a month."
"Yes. Worst of all, I needed stone from the quarry to build a foundation. How am I going to get it now?"
"I think we should be worried about other things. With Dunstan conquered, I'm sure Ravenwallow will be next."
"What about Bearfront? Aren't they close by?"
"They've got to be at least three miles farther away from the castle then we are." They kept talking, their conversation bringing up mentions of an army and the undead.
Gavin looked over at the group. "Sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear. It seems there is trouble brewing in the area. What's going on?"
A bearded man turned to look at Gavin and his party. "Are you travelers? Adventurers? You're clearly not from around here." He signed. "I'm afraid we've had a run of bad luck. This necromancer has set herself up in this old castle nearby with a bunch of skeletons."
Another man pitched in. "She then started taking over the local villages. She marches in, turns a bunch of people to stone, and starts demanding tribute."
Crazar put down his ale. "Why hasn't anyone stopped her yet?" He chuckled, a little tipsy.
"We don't have the manpower for that. Each village only has a handful of guards for the occasional monster attack. We can't march against her."
Thalia put down her fork. "We've taken on powerful spellcasters before, even a necromancer. Maybe we can help."
The man stroked his beard for a moment. "Well, we don't often get adventurers here…"
***
After talking to the chief of Ravenwallow, and after giving Crazar enough time to sober up, the party set out on a new mission. They were to vanquish the necromancer Juana before she could claim their village.
Just about everyone in the village knew where the castle was. It had been abandoned for years and was believed to be infested with monsters. The necromancer likely cleared it out when she moved in. However, now the issue was with the army of skeletons wandering around the grounds.
They spent a day studying their movements from the trees and bushes and came up with a plan. The skeletons didn't seem that smart. Sahar blessed five wooden barrels and they got inside of them. Progress was slow, but when the boneheads weren't looking, they would move closer to the castle, avoiding the main door. Crazar let them know when to go and when to stop. They made their way to a hole in the side, guarded by a few sentries.
Crazar distracted them with a levitated rock and Sahar cast a purification spell. Green smoke seeped out of the bones and the sentries collapsed onto the ground. It was a risky move, as they couldn't be sure the necromancer couldn't sense the loss of six of her minions, but they had no choice.
Next they cleared away the debris and checked for more skeletons, stopping every time a patrol lumbered by. Then they made their way to the castle itself. There weren't as many skeletons inside, but they did find a vegetable garden.
Silvius was able to open the back door. "Now we have to figure out where she is."
The party entered the castle and moved down the hallway. No one they spoke to knew the layout of the castle, but after seeing it in person, they had a guess of how it was put together. After only half an hour of searching, they were able to find the throne room.
Gavin peeked through a keyhole in a side door. He was able to see a pair of statues: one was of an angry woman holding a copper sword, and the other was of a scared woman with a pair of braids. Close to the side was a wooden throne. A skeleton walked past, but took no notice of anything.
Just then, a woman came into view wearing a sliver crown and blue cape. She held a staff of made of bone. She had to be the necromancer.
Gavin held up his hand and signaled the party. They got ready, holding their weapons tight, and he opened the door. The group rushed in, Gavin taking point and Silvius close behind him. Crazar and Thalia moved to the side to get ready to fire. Sahar stood between them, already preparing to cast her spell.
"Who dares intrude about my throne room!?" Juana jumped to her feet and pointed her wand at them. There were a few more statues behind her, including a naga and a wolf girl.
There were a few other skeletons in the room as well. They charged the party and Gavin struck them down. Crazar fired off a blast striking a few as well. Sahar started chanting, soon bathing the bones in light as they tried to pull themselves back together. Green smoke seeped from them and they fell to the floor once again.
Thalia fired an arrow at Juana. However, a wall of bones rose up and blocked the shot before it could connect.
A voice came from behind the barrier. "Camilla! I need some support!"
A red haired wolf woman clapped her hands. "You can do it!"
"Not moral support, fight them!" Juana sounded angry.
“Right!” Camilla drew her sword and charged.
Gavin stopped to block her strike. "I didn't hear anything about her having living allies."
Camilla jumped back and readied herself for the next strike. "I wouldn't call myself an ally."
Thalia fired a shot at Camilla, who dodged it. As she pulled out another arrow, a blast of green light struck her side. She locked up, arrow in hand, and the color drained from her skin, a look of horror on her face. She was now a stone statue.
Crazar shot a fire ball at Juana, who was pointing her ring at Thalia. However, she blocked it with the bone wall again. "We have to get through that.” He leaped to the side to avoid a shot of blue lightning.
Thalia fired another arrow at Juana as Sahar stood behind her, the light from her staff fading.
Juana blocked it with the bone wall again. "I though I got you already."
Gavin exchanged a few blows with Camilla. "Crazar, Thalia, keep Juana walled off with hits. Silvius, Sahar, help me take this one down."
"That's not going to work." Juana fired off a bolt of lighting before raising her barrier again when Crazar launched some fire balls.
As Gavin blocked another of Camilla's blows with his shield, Silvius rushed in and attacked. She grazed the woman, who leaped back.
Camilla's wounds closed up before long and fur burst across her arms. Soon, her face elongated as it too became covered in fur. She then struck Gavin, knocking him back.
"Crap, she's a full-on werewolf." Gavin righted himself as Silvius covered him.
There was a flash of blue light. Then, Juana dropped her barrier. She fired her ring at Crazar. It struck him in the gut and he locked up. Soon, they could see the color drain from his face as he turned to gray marble.
Juana let out a scream as an arrow pass by her head, barely missing her. She then launched at fire ball at Thalia. It struck her across the chest and knocked her down.
"Thalia!" Sahar rushed over to her fallen lover. The end of her staff emitted a warm light.
"Silvius, cover them. I'll hold off the werewolf." Gavin slashed at Camilla, forcing her back, if only for a moment.
"On it." Silvius rushed Juana, dodging a green blast from the ring. Not giving her time for another spell, the bone wall rose up and blocked her attack.
The main door opened. Skeletons marched into the throne room brandishing weapons. They rushed the party.
Sahar and Thalia were over Crazar, the former pointing her quarterstaff at him. As it's light washed over him, he returned to normal.
Camilla knocked Gavin's sword out of his hands. Then she started poking his helmet repeatedly.
"What are you doing?" Gavin tried moving out of her reach.
"Fighting you... more or less. It's nothing personal."
Gavin didn't know what to think at first. The werewolf continued to make a number of light hits that he barely felt. However, when he tried to go for his sword, she struck his hand away. She appeared to be putting in minimal effort and if the skeletons hadn't joined in, it would just be annoying.
Thalia fired a glowing arrow, striking one of the skeletons. Green smoke seeped from it as it took a moment to fall to the ground.
A few more attacked Silvius. She broke off her attack on Juana to strike them down. During that moment, Juana dropped her barrier and struck her from behind with a blast from her ring. The skilled warrior wasn't fully able to avoid it and turned to stone as she tried to run. In her awkward pose, she fell to the ground. Fortunately, she didn't break.
Juana launched another attack. With a phrase, a single bolt of blue lightning flew from her wand, striking Crazar, jumping to Sahar, then to Thalia, and finally a random skeleton. The three of them fell to their knees, but the skeleton seemed fine.
Sahar used her quarterstaff as a cane as she tried to pull herself to her feet. However, before she could, a blast of green light struck her. She let out a yelp as her body hardened. The marble pattern spread up her face and her movements stopped.
Juana panted. "I should have gotten her first. Second at the very–ahhh!" She was struck in the gut with a blast from Crazar, falling onto butt. She raised the bone wall before another blast hit her. "Not smart. You will be sorry for that."
More skeletons ran after the group. Crazar fired off a few shots, blasting them to pieces. However more advanced on them.
Gavin broke off his “battle” with the werewolf. He ran at Juana. "Run! We have to get out of here. I'll hold her off."
"I can't leave her," Thalia cried out, embracing Sahar’s petrified body.
Juana fired a blast from her ring. The shot struck Gavin's chestpiece and reflected onto the ceiling. Before he could power through the skeletons, the bone wall rose again.
"Camilla! Tackle him or something!"
"Crap!" Gavin couldn't turn in time and the werewolf leaped on him, knocking him to the floor. He dropped his sword.
Crazar shot a fire ball at her, knocking her off. She shook it off and got back onto her feet.
Juana dropped her bone wall and shot Crazar with the ring as Camilla deflected an arrow. He turned to stone. She then shot him with a blast of wind, knocking him down. However, he remained undamaged. "Surrender, or I will blast you all to pieces!"
"Stop! Don't hurt her!" Thalia moved in front of Sahar, holding her bow to her side. In a moment, she was hit with a blast from the ring, joining her lover in her stone prison.
"No!" Gavin shouted. He shoved Camilla off of him and reached for his sword. She kicked his hand.
"Nothing personal, but you've lost this one."
"It's time to end this." Juana lazily aimed her ring at Gavin. "Hold still for a bit." A blinding green light struck him.
He could feel himself becoming stiff, his ability to move quickly being lost. Soon, his mind drifted into darkness.
The next thing he knew, the skeletons gripped him by the arms and yanked him off the ground. They held him still as Juana walked close to him.
"I'm back." She slid a leather collar around his neck.
"What?" He was a bit confused by her statement. He stumbled when the skeletons released his arms.
"You work for me now." Juana spoke matter-of-factly. She pulled out another collar and walked over to Sahar's stone form.
"The hell I am!" Gavin threw a punch at Juana, but before it landed he suddenly stopped, his muscles locking up. He relaxed and dropped his arm. "What the?" He blinked and tried to kick her, once again freezing in place.
"Don't bother, it won't work no matter what you try." A blue haired neko spoke behind him. "Not even poison."
Gavin turned to look at her. She wore what seemed to be a hand-me-down maid uniform and a leather collar. She was leaning against a pillar and reading a book, turning a page. Closeby was Camilla, back in her human form. "Who are you?"
She sighed. "Ness. The short of it is that I'm a slave... just like you."
Sahar let out a scream as the skeletons held her in place. The quarterstaff was ripped from her hands and one of them tried to cover her mouth. Juana soon placed a collar around her neck as well.
"Quiet. You are hereby forbidden from purifying my skeletons or restoring any of those I've turned to stone."
Sahar stumbled back as the skeletons released her arms. She gasped as she struggled to get the words out, but didn't make a sound. She looked over at Thalia, tears welling up in her eyes. She hugged her stone form.
Gavin ran over to them. "Stop! Let them go." He was able to try another attack on Juana, but stopped himself when he remembered his failed attempts. Realizing whatever enchantment he was under likely had something to do with the collars he and Sahar now wore, he reached for his next. However, his fingers stopped short of the leather strip wrapped around his neck.
"Stand back while I do this, you two." As Gavin and Sahar reluctantly heeded Juana's command, the skeletons grabbed Thalia's arms. She then leveled her ring at her and fired, restoring her to the flesh as well. She then collared the poor archer as well.
"What's going on here?" Thalia snapped out of her confusion as Sahar hugged her.
"I've restored your companion you seem to care so much about. Since I did you this kindness, you are to heal me of the wound your boorish spellcaster inflected upon me. And for both your sakes, it best not leave a mark."
Sahar took her quarterstaff as it was handed to her. She pointed it at Juana's belly as she exposed it to her and spoke the words. Light glowed from it and soon Juana's skin looked good as new. "What have you done to us?" She lowered her staff once she was finished.
"Wait until I'm finished." Juana turned around and walked over to Silvius. The skeletons picked her up off the ground, holding her arms tight in their bony grasp. One blast of green light later and Silvius was struggling. Juana slid the collar on behind her. "Settle down now."
"What in blazes?" Silvius turned to look at her.
"It seems we have been completely defeated." Gavin sighed. He racked his brain trying to figure a way out of this situation. As it didn't seem like they were in any immediate danger, he decided to play along for now.
Juana took her staff from a skeleton and walked over to a beaten up old throne. She sat down and looked at the group. "I am Queen Juana Underwood, and this is Castle Underwood. You are now all my subjects."
"Oh that'd be the day." Thalia clutched her bow. She raised her hand, ready to draw an arrow, only to find them missing.
Gavin looked at her. "It's no use. We can't attack..."
"Kneel before me." All six of them stopped what they were doing and knelt before Juana, even Camilla and Ness. "Like it or not, you are all going to serve me, one way or another. I'm going to turn this backwater region into a mighty empire one day. Serve me well and you will be rewarded. Fail me and you will be punished." Her wand glowed, small sparks of lightning came off of it. "Now tell me, why have you attacked me?"
The four of them spoke at once. They all gave the same answer, but worded it differently.
"One at a time." Juana looked at Gavin. "You, why did you and your group attack me?"
"We needed money, so we pitched a job to the elders of Ravenwallow. The people there thought you would attack them soon, so they hired us to stop you before you did." Gavin gulped. He didn't expect the secrets to come out so easily. "What more secrets will I spill if she asks me?"
"Ravenwallow? Oh yes, I remember them from the map. Well then, it's time I bring them into the fold, or burn them to the ground. It depends on them."
"Wait, there is no need to attack them!" Silvius jumped to her feet and moved forward. She drew her swords.
Gavin reached out his hand. "Wait, stop!"
Silvius did stop, but not before reaching the throne. Still, she couldn't bring herself to strike Juana.
"They brought it on themselves when they choose to attack me." Juana smacked Silvius. "But don't worry, I will be merciful. All they have to do is surrender and I will only turn a few of them to stone."
"Why?"
"Oh, I take little trophies from all the villages I capture." Juana stood up and pushed Silvius back.
Gavin grabbed her and pulled her away. He whispered into her ear. "Leave it be for now. There is nothing we can do."
Juana stroked the stone Naga next to her throne. "This one was my first. She was hiding downstairs when I moved in." She then moved to the other side to the human woman holding a sword. Next to her was a scared looking woman with a pair of twin braids. "And this one was taken from taken from Giha Village the day I took it. I couldn't help myself with the other one. I just happened to see her a few days ago." She slowly stroked the villager's nude form.
Silvius grinded her teeth.
Juana walked over to a wolf woman. She had a somber expression and clasped her hands together. "This lovely maiden volunteered to join my collection after Hareville joined the fold." She slowly slid her hands down her toned belly.
"Don't get the wrong idea." Camilla grunted. "I'm from Hareville too. She's the chief's daughter. She offered herself up so she would turn him back to normal."
Juana signed. "Why did you have to spoil it?"
"I hate you, remember?" Camilla glanced at the last statue, a rather buff woman. "Oh, and she's a stone mason from Dunstan. She was grabbed when we took it over."
"The symmetry is off now. I think I need another statue, maybe one from Ravenwallow."
"Or you could just move the extra from Giha." Ness closed the book.
Juana looked at Ness. "Regardless we march on Ravenwallow tomorrow. For now, find them some place to sleep. There have got to be some clean rooms you can stick them in."
Silvius looked over Crazar. "What about him? Aren't you doing to restore him as well?"
Juana shook her head. "If I was going to I would have done so already. You four are enough."
"Don't you think he would be helpful?" Gavin wasn't sure, but he had hoped Crazar would be able to free them of their collars.
"I don't need his skill set. I've already got plenty of magic."
Ness sighed as she waited by the door. "Don't bother trying to change her mind. She only has so many collars and she doesn't know how to make more. Our numbers are limited. She grabbed a cook from Dunstan, so I guess there are seven of us now."
"That's enough of that." Juana stood up and started walking over. She stopped at Gavin. Grabbing his belt, she pulled his pants and looked down. "Hmmm, meet me in my bedchambers tonight. We can discuss your new role then."
Gavin gulped. He backed away, his pants snapping back into place. "Err, I'd best find my room now."
"See you tonight~." Juana waved goodbye. "Just don't leave the castle grounds."
They followed Ness out the room and down the hallway. Silvius looked over at Gavin with a sly grin. "Looks like someone is popular."
"Ugh, this is attention I don't need."
"Well at least that's one thing I don't have to worry about for once." Silvius giggled.
Ness looked back at them as she turned the corner. "Oh, she swings both ways. She might call you to her bed chambers one night."
"Oh joy…"